Elvis Costello - Songwriter, Singer - Biography.com Elvis Costello British singer/songwriter Elvis Costello extended the lyrical range of punk and new wave music with songs like "Alison," "Everyday I Write the Book" and "Veronica." IN THESE GROUPS “My ultimate vocation in life is to be an irritant.” Elvis Costello Synopsis Born in London, England, in 1954, singer/songwriter Elvis Costello was first signed to a record label in the late 1970s. His music took the energy and cynicism of punk and combined it with the more sophisticated lyrics and structure of new wave music, resulting in hits like "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes," "Alison," "Everyday I Write the Book" and "Veronica." Background Beginning as one of Britain's new wave artists of the late 1970s and early '80s, Elvis Costello wrote and recorded a string of albums that challenged not only the musical style of the era, but the myriad styles of popular music.

Costello was born Declan Patrick McManus in London, England, on August 25, 1954, to father Ross McManus, a British big-band singer, and mother Lilian Alda, a record store manager. Inspired by the musical freedom left in the wake of the Sex Pistols, Costello threw off the shackles of his workaday office job as a computer programmer and played his first gig in 1970, performing his own compositions in a London folk club. He took the stage name Elvis Costello in the late 1970s, when he was first signed to a record label. Debut Album: 'My Aim Is True' Costello released a stellar debut album, My Aim Is True, on the small British label Stiff in 1977; the album included such hits as "Alison" and "(The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes." His music took the energy and cynicism of punk and combined it with the more sophisticated lyrics and structure of new wave music. Also in 1977, Costello was first introduced to America on Saturday Night Live.

Far more conscious of pop song-craft than other bands of the era, Costello, along with his backup group, the Attractions, went on to record a series of meticulously composed yet edgy albums that ranged in style from straightforward power-pop to soul and country. Costello was joined by the Attractions, a three-piece group, on his second album, This Year's Model (released in 1978 and including the hit "Pump It Up"), and would continue to work with the trio on most of his albums for the next eight years. Icon of New Wave Costello scored his first U.S. Top 40 single in 1983 with "Everyday I Write the Book," from the album Punch the Clock (1983), which also included the popular single "Shipbuilding," a collaboration between Costello and Clive Langer. Later hits include "Veronica," from his 1989 album Spike—named in reference to wacky 1940s band leader Spike Jones —and "The Other Side of Summer," from 1991's Mighty Like a Rose.

Known for inventive collaborations, Costello has recorded with numerous musicians, including rock/pop icons Paul McCartney and Burt Bacharach , with whom he won a Grammy Award in 1999 for "I Still Have That Other Girl" (best pop collaboration with vocals). Costello has also produced for a number of bands, including the Pogues, Squeeze and the Specials. Going into the new millennium, Costello continued to release albums that showcased his willingness to explore a variety of themes, including the orchestral Il Signo (2002) and The River in Reverse (2006), his collaboration with pianist/songwriter Allen Toussaint. Costello later worked with hip-hop group/ Jimmy Fallon band The Roots for 2013's Wise Up Ghost. Ross McManus aka Day Costello Ross McManus, Father Of Elvis Costello, Dies At 84 by Paul Cashmere on November 29, 2011 in News Elvis Costello’s father Ross McManus (aka Day Costello) has passed away at the age of 84. Ross McManus aka Day Costello Ross was also a musician.

In 1950, he formed Ross McManus and his New Era Music. He started out as a trumpet player but soon became the lead singer. In 1955 he joined Joe Loss and his Orchestra as the trumpet player. With Loss, he recorded ‘I Can’t Take My Eyes Off You’ under his own name. It flopped but was later a hit for Andy Williams. Later he started to record under pseudonyms. His biggest hit was in Australia. In 1970 at the height of the record ban on radio in Australia Ross released a cover of The Beatles ‘The Long And Winding Road’ and had the hit with that song in Australia. At the time, radio was fighting with the record labels and for 18 months refused to play certain labels including EMI, the label that distributed The Beatles Apple Records. So more than 17 years before Elvis Costello had his first hit in Australia, Ross McManus had a hit with a Beatles song under the name Day Costello. (Costello was his mother’s maiden name). In 1973 he recorded the jingle ‘The Secret Lemonade Drinker’ for R White lemonade.

His song Declan (Elvis) played drums of the ad. Ross McManus is survived by his 5 sons. His wife has also passed away. Ross MacManus: Singer, trumpeter and father of Elvis Costello | The Independent Ross MacManus: Singer, trumpeter and father of Elvis Costello Thursday 1 December 2011 00:00 BST Click to follow The Independent Online MacManus and his son share the limelight in 1994 Rex Features Although Ross MacManus is known as Elvis Costello's father, he had an enthralling career of his own as a band singer and trumpeter. He was also behind one of the most popular commercials of the 1970s, "the secret lemonade drinker" ad for R White, for which his son provided backing vocals. Born in Birkenhead in 1927, the son of a cruise-line worker, Ross MacManus learnt to sing in Catholic churches. "Whenever I read about a black singer, they always say that they started in church," he told me in 2001, "and it was the same for a lot of white singers.

I was singing in Latin in the church choir when I was nine years old. Singing plainsong requires a very flexible voice and that has stayed with me. Mr Lowry's teaching has not been wasted." MacManus learnt violin for the school orchestra but had an urge to be a jazz trumpeter. He served in the forces in Egypt from 1948 to 1950 and then played with jazz bands around Merseyside. He favoured bebop, and was head-butted by Wally Fisher, from the more traditional Merseysippi Jazz Band, when he asked to borrow his trumpet for a guest appearance. In 1952, he moved to London and played with Ronnie Ross and Tubby Hayes and sang in Mecca Ballrooms with Bob Miller's dance band. By day, he worked as a clerk for a timber company. In 1955, he joined Joe Loss and his Orchestra, which had a residency at the Hammersmith Palais.

His hair, which grew upwards and outwards like a palm tree, was groomed, and he was given new spectacles and a good suit, but, in his own words, "I was never a handsome Tarzan like Frankie Vaughan." Because of restrictions on recorded music, the BBC employed bandsto recreate the hits and Joe Loss's band was particularly adept, whether itwas "Tie Me Kangaroo Down, Sport" by Rolf Harris or "See Emily Play" by Pink Floyd. "Joe never wanted to be a dinosaur and said we were there to entertain. It didn't matter what the song was; we would perform it as accurately as possible. With one exception. Joe hated fade-out endings and very often we would end like Billy Smart's Circus. When we did the Who's 'My Generation', we had all the audience clapping at the end." There was a strong element of show business about all their performances. "When I did Sam Cooke's 'Cupid', Larry Gretton was on another microphone making the sound of the arrows and pretending to fire them.

It was very funny but everyone was watching his antics and disregarding my vocal." In 1963, Joe Loss and his Orchestra appeared on the same Royal Variety Show as the Beatles and MacManus sang "If I had a Hammer". The following year they released "Patsy Girl" as Ross MacManus and the Joe Loss Blue Beats, with MacManus performing in a West Indian accent. The publicity photograph showed MacManus with the same heavy black horn-rimmed specs later favoured by his son. Two years later, "Patsy Girl" became a hit in Germany and Loss told MacManus: "You can go to Germany and mime to the record, but don't tell the men". MacManus went to Germany and when he returned, Loss told the band that he had been ill. MacManus recorded for the budget labels Embassy, Cannon, Crossbow and Saga, covering hits under pseudonyms such as Hal Burton, mostly because he didn't want Joe Loss to know of his involvement. In 1997 some cover versions were collected for a CD with the catchpenny title Elvis's Dad Sings Elvis.

In 1967, MacManus recorded "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" for Decca but was irritated that the producer, Dick Rowe, made him sound like Rolf Harris. Then, in 1971, he released "The Long and Winding Road" as Day Costello, taking the first name of the jazz musician Day Robertson, and his grandmother's maiden name. His son Declan was born to his first wife, Lillian, in London in 1954. MacManus later settled in Twickenham with his second wife and they had four sons. All the sons play Irish music and the family band, Bible Code Sundays, has had some success. For much of the 1970s MacManus performed in northern clubs, and when Declan became Elvis Costello he did not reveal his upbringing. But the New Musical Express found the photograph of Day Costello and put two and two together. Father and son worked together on occasion, singing "At Last" together at a Joe Loss tribute concert at the Barbican, and MacManus added trumpet to his albums Out Of Our Idiot (1987) and Mighty Likea Rose (1991).

MacManus was bemused by his son's new name, "When Declan had dinner with Robert De Niro, he said, 'Hey, Elvis Costello. Are you an Italian boy?'" MacManus reflected, "It's like the fairies stole my little boy and brought me this genius. It's like he's written the works of Shakespeare ... He's not been twisted out of shape by the business and I like that. His song 'The Birds Will Still Be Singing' is my epitaph." Spencer Leigh Ronald Patrick Ross MacManus, singer and trumpeter: born Birkenhead 20 October 1927; married 1952 Lillian Alda Ablett (marriage dissolved; one son), secondly Sara (died 2011; four sons); died 24 November 2011.

More about: Elvis Costello - Biography - IMDb Elvis Costello Biography Showing all 47 items Jump to: Overview (3) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (3) | Trade Mark (2) | Trivia (20) | Personal Quotes (18) Overview (3) 5' 9¼" (1.76 m) Mini Bio (1) Elvis Costello was born Declan Patrick MacManus in London, England and raised in Liverpool. The son of British band leader Ross MacManus , Costello took his pseudonym from Elvis Presley and his father's stage name (Day Costello). He began performing professionally in 1969 and was a musician and/or singer in many bands around London before forming a moderately successful pub-rock band called "Flip City" in the mid-1970s. Working full time as a computer operator, he landed his first record deal with Stiff Records in 1977 and recorded his first album "My Aim Is True" while on vacation. The album was a smash hit in England and landed Costello a worldwide distribution deal with Columbia records.

Forming his backup group, "The Attractions", for his second album, Costello went on to record several popular and influential albums over the next decade. Today, he is regarded as one of the most influential and popular singer/songwriters in modern music. In 1998, he collaborated with legendary tune smith, Burt Bacharach , on a highly successful album of love songs "Painted From Memory". - IMDb Mini Biography By: Ralph Haber Spouse (3) Fender guitars Trivia (20) Legally changed name to Elvis Costello in 1977, then to Declan Patrick Aloysius MacManus in 1986. Post-1986, he used both names for professional purposes, though he usually performed under the Costello moniker. "Aloysius" was not one of his original middle names. In addition to recordings as "Elvis Costello" (often backed by The Attractions), has recorded music as "Declan MacManus", "Napoleon Dynamite & The Royal Guard", "The Coward Brothers" (with T Bone Burnett ), "Nick Lowe & His Sound", "The Emotional Toothpaste" and "The Imposter".

Plays the guitar, harmonica and piano. Lead singer and guitarist of Elvis Costello and the Attractions. Fan of Liverpool Football Club. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (as a member of the Elvis Costello and the Attractions) on 10 March 2003. May 2003 - announced engagement to Canadian jazz singer, Diana Krall . Attended the special dinner at Sony Studios in Los Angeles to honor the singer and activist Sting as MusiCares 2004 Person of the Year. The evening celebrated Sting's contribution to popular music and honored his charitable work with Amnesty International and the Rainforest Foundation. Other stars in attendance included Kylie Minogue , Elton John & Dido . (6th February 2004). He was voted the 30th Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Artist of all time by Rolling Stone. Is a big fan of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys . Has twin sons, Dexter Henry Lorcan and Frank Harlan James, born December 6, 2006, with wife Diana Krall . Through Diana Krall , Jamie Chisholm is related to Elvis Costello.

The instrumentals for his debut album, "My Aim Is True" were provided by a band called, Clover. For the album sessions, they were without their lead singer, Huey Lewis . Resides in New York City. One of the stories behind his stage name is that the singer--whose real name is Declan McManus--took the first name of his favorite singer, Elvis Presley , and the last name of his favorite comedian, Lou Costello . The Presley part is correct, but "Costello" is not in honor of Lou Costello; it's the maiden name of his paternal great-grandmother, Elizabeth Costello. Latest Album "North" to be released in September 2003 [August 2003] Elvis' new band, the "Imposters" break new album "The Delivery Man" [2004] He is of Irish descent. Prefers to be called by his birth name by family and when not performing. Personal Quotes (18) There is something kind of absurd about people who live in such a comfortable, cushioned, spoiled society tattooing themselves and piercing themselves to make them appear tribal.

We're trying to act like we're some sort of tribe that's been discovered in the mall. Be nice to the British boy. I'm the only ally you have left. Sometimes doing an old song is like returning to the text of a play. It's not invalid, just because it's old, otherwise nobody would be acting [ William Shakespeare ]--not to say that everything I do is Shakespeare!. But it's inevitable that it changes its meaning or impact. That's why I never really sing anything from a nostalgic point of view, because even if it's 25 years old, it's in the moment. That's the beauty of live performance. You can always say it could be better, but if you're not careful with ambition, the next thing you know you're sailing a statue of yourself down the river . . . [on Van Morrison 's "Astral Weeks"] It might be the best record of original thought that anybody's ever made. It's so completely unlike anything that went before it. And the vocal performances are the freest that I think Van ever recorded. Writing about music is like dancing about architecture - it's a really stupid thing to want to do. Do I resent people looking for the autobiographical in my songs?

No, I don't resent it. I just blame John Lennon . It's The Plastic Ono Band, that album started it all. After that, everything was supposed to be fucking confessional. The early '70s were full of all these people baring their fucking souls for public scrutiny. There were records whose authenticity depended on their confessional aspect, and if you read certain magazines and the background interviews, you knew what these songs were about. And that, for me, always used to spoil it. Particularly when you found out what dickheads some of the people were that they were writing about. I'd rather have them be like Smokey Robinson songs, which could be about anyone. It's when you're drinking and you're not happy, that's when you've got to worry. That's when it's gonna affect the way you look at things, because you're probably drinking for the wrong reasons. And that's when things start to get warped and you don't think anything through. I'll never admit that I'm drunk. But we all drink.

And sometimes it's for the right reasons...to let your mind off the leash for a while and have a bit of fun, and then you don't mind if you make a bit of a prat of yourself. And it doesn't matter if you end up shouting at people, or have a punch-up or whatever, as long as you wake up the same person. It's when you don't want to wake up the same person that you've got a problem. Was I purposefully fucking up my life to give myself something to write about? I think I did that for about a year. At the very most. Then I began to mistrust the results. Because if you do that, it's like when they pour acid in rabbit's eyes or something. What does it prove? It proves that it hurts the animal. Very smart. It's unnecessary research. And I guess I did some unnecessary research for a while. Then I'd write something that would scare the hell out of me. Like there's a couple of songs on Get Happy!! that, when I read them back, I just scared the hell out of myself.

And I thought, 'Uh-uh...better not think any more about this...it's going too far.' Because you can think too fucking much, you know? And it gets a bit fucking evil. It was difficult to develop an original style. I have no idea who it was I might have been imitating, whether consciously or unconsciously. My mother tells the story of me bringing a 45 home and saying, 'It's unbreakable!' and bending it...and it broke. I get to play festival occasions with an orchestra - a jazz orchestra or a symphony orchestra. Believe me, that stops it from getting monotonous. Each performance requires slightly different dynamics really, really keeps the music from getting routine. Everything in show business is [theatrical] to a degree, you know. You don't go up there in your street clothes. And I've worked with a nom de guerre - a nom de plume, a nom de plank - all my career. So to me it's not unusual to take on a character to go up there. It doesn't make what you're singing about less sincere.

[on Steve Nieve ] He is incredible, and I don't think he gets nearly enough notice for the work that he's done. Both as a composer and certainly in the work we've done together, he's constantly surprising. It's hard to say what he's playing half the time, and what instruments he's playing: all sorts of sounds are coming out. It's fantastic. Generally, I think the best that can be achieved by songs like 'Tramp The Dirt Down' is something like 'Free Nelson Mandela' achieved. The record didn't get Mandela released, but it did increase the membership of the anti-apartheid movement, because Jerry Dammers very intelligently printed their address on the sleeve. And the record introduced Mandela to a lot of people who maybe otherwise would never have heard of him. And there's a point where political art only works on that level - the communication of basic information. [on Margaret Thatcher and 'Tramp The Dirt Down'] The song's not a party political broadcast, there's no manifesto. It just says, 'I'll only be happy when this woman's dead.' And some people no doubt might find that extreme. But it's meant to be. I make no apology for that song.

It's an honest emotional response to events, and writing it was like casting out demons or something. And the song itself is the result of a form of madness, because when you get to that point of thinking these thoughts, actually wishing somebody dead, it really does become a form of madness. It's a psychopathic thought. And it's fucking disturbing to find it in your own head. But it would be cowardly not to express it. Because once it's there, if you don't get it out, it's only going to come back and haunt you some more. I also think you have to remember that it's not only her that the song is aimed at. It's what she represents. The way she's changed the way people value things. It's like some kind of mass hypnosis she's achieved. People are afraid to speak out. You know, one thing I thought I'd be asked when people heard it was whether I was saying it might've been a good thing if she'd died in the Brighton bombing. I don't think so. It would have made things 10 times worse, because then she would have been a martyr. We would have had a dead queen.

So really, in a profound sense, the song is hopeless. It's a hopeless argument. Because I think it's a hopeless situation. So, no, it's not in a large, historical sense, going to change anything. I don't know much about Morrissey . Apart from the fact he sometimes brings out records with the greatest titles in the world that somewhere along the line he then neglects to write songs for. See also Elvis Costello | rockportraits Essays on rock stars complete with a hand drawn portraits Elvis Costello Elvis Costello Elvis Costello – circa 1980 “And you smile / And you flirt / And you shine all the buttons on your green shirt” – ‘Green Shirt’ (Elvis Costello) Bonnie Bramlett is best known as half of the duo Delaney and Bonnie. She and her husband, Delaney Bramlett, divorce in 1972. By 1979, she is singing back-up vocals in Stephen Stills’ touring band. Renowned as a ‘blue-eyed soul’ singer, she also throws a mean punch. Just ask the guy on the receiving end of her blow on 16 March 1979.

After playing a gig in Columbus, Ohio, that night, members of Stills’ entourage retire to the local Holiday Inn. However, they get into a fight at that establishment. Some fellow from another band makes ‘nasty and disparaging remarks about America’. When Bonnie Bramlett points out the links between the other party’s own music and American rhythm and blues, her new acquaintance describes Ray Charles as “a blind, ignorant nigger” and James Brown as “another dumb nigger.” So Bonnie punches this guy and a full-scale brawl nearly erupts. And what does this have to do with Elvis Costello? Well, he is the one getting up close and personal with Bonnie Bramlett’s fist. When Bramlett reports the incident to the press, Elvis Costello holds a press conference in New York City. He explains his remarks as “just a way to bring a silly argument to a quick end by saying the most outrageous thing possible. And it worked too.” That’s not exactly a portrait of remorse and contrition. Of course, a cursory examination of Elvis Costello’s music reveals his debt to American music, including rhythm and blues, and there is nothing else to indicate racism or any grudge against Ray Charles or James Brown.

But, in his heyday, Elvis Costello has a gift for getting under people’s skin. And a lot of anger to get out of his system. That too is reflected in his music. The artist who comes to be known as Elvis Costello is born Declan Patrick McManus on 25 August 1954 in London, England. His father, Ross McManus, is a vocalist for a jazz group called The Joe Loss Band. The senior McManus then goes on to perform as a solo cabaret act. He often receives popular records of the day and passes them along to his son, encouraging the boy’s interest in music. After completing high school, Declan finds work as a computer programmer for cosmetics manufacturer Elizabeth Arden. The eyestrain involved in this occupation results in the spectacles that become Elvis Costello’s trademark look. In 1974 Declan McManus marries Mary Burgoyne. A son, Matthew, is born to them in 1975. Despite work and family, Declan maintains an interest in music and, in the early 1970s, begins gigging in folk clubs.

In 1976 he forms a pub rock / country rock band called Flip City. A number of demo tapes are recorded in the hopes of securing a recording contract. When things don’t work out so well with Flip City, he goes solo under the name of D. P. Costello, borrowing his mother’s maiden name (or, by another account, his paternal great grandmother’s maiden name). One of the struggling musician’s demo tapes lands on the desk of Jake Riviera, ‘one of the heads of the fledgling independent record label, Stiff’. Riviera likes what he hears and signs D. P. Costello, stipulating he change his first name to Elvis. This is, of course, after one of rock music’s founding fathers, Elvis Presley. Punk rock, the new style of the time in England, is fond of patently false names like Johnny Rotten or Joe Strummer. It is a bit of a giggle to dub the newcomer Elvis, the more so since he is already using the surname Costello, evoking thoughts of the comedian Lou Costello of the famed Abbott And Costello team. So a name like Elvis Costello reads as something akin to ‘fake, joke rock star’.

The gag seems a bit more ghoulish when Elvis Presley dies on 16 August 1977, but by then it is too late to change. Elvis Costello’s career is already underway. Jake Riviera puts Elvis Costello in a recording studio with Nick Lowe as producer. Also signed to Stiff Records as a solo act, singer / songwriter / bassist Nick Lowe is, at the time, best known for his stint with the British rock band Brinsley Schwarz in the early to mid ‘70s. Nick Lowe produces the first five albums recorded by Elvis Costello. Since Costello doesn’t have a band, an American group called Clover are deputised to provide backing. They give their lead singer the day off and work as The Shamrocks. Years later, with their vocalist back aboard, they become famous in their own right as Huey Lewis And The News. On 26 March 1977, Elvis Costello releases his first single ‘Less Than Zero’ backed with ‘Radio Sweetheart’. So Elvis Costello can have a regular backing band, Stiff Records puts an ad in Melody Maker, a U.K.

rock music paper, on 3 June for musicians to form a ‘rocking combo’. In the meantime, the sessions with Clover are used for his first full length album. On 22 July comes ‘My Aim Is True’ (1977) (UK no. 14, US no. 32, AUS no. 25). Elvis Costello describes the debut album as a bunch of songs about “guilt and revenge.” The bespectacled author explains, “I spent a lot of time just with a big jar of instant coffee and the first Clash album [The Clash is Joe Strummer’s punk rock band], listening to it over and over.” In broad terms, Elvis Costello is a punk rock artist, or new wave anyway, the more mild-mannered variant into which punk is already mutating. Not that ‘mild-mannered’ describes Costello. He boils with anger and resentment. But, as becomes progressively clearer as his career continues, his musical influences and resources do not fit easily under a purist ‘punk’ or ‘new wave’ banner. They are the nearest applicable categories, but there is more to Elvis Costello than such tags indicate.

Consider the single from ‘My Aim Is True’, a song called ‘Watching The Detectives’ (UK no. 15). Musically, it’s reggae, the sound of black Jamaica. Costello’s take on the genre, which he never really revisits, is as robust and healthy as other English acts like The Clash, The Police and The Pretenders who all come to toy with the form. Lyrically, the song matches the infatuation with a woman against a television (or movie?) police story. “She’s filing her nails as they’re dragging the lake / I don’t know how much more of this I can take,” Costello sings through gritted teeth. The album’s title is taken from a line in the song ‘Alison’ where he reassures the woman that “Alison / I know this world is killing you / Alison / My aim is true.” This song is described as ‘a poisoned valentine’. Ostensibly a show of sympathy for an abandoned damsel, the narrator’s own wounded heart keeps forcing resentment from his lips: “Sometimes I wish that I could stop you from talking / When I hear the silly things that you say.” This flows over a kind of wrong-footed country twang.

The pilot single, ‘Less Than Zero’, is also included here. Together with tracks like ‘Mystery Dance’, ‘(The Angels Want To Wear My) Red Shoes’ and ‘Miracle Man’, it adds up to ‘My Aim Is True’ being Elvis Costello’s best album – though, to be fair, there is not much separating the levels of quality between his first five efforts. In the wake of Elvis Costello’s first album, the ‘Melody Maker’ advertisement brings together a backing band. Elvis Costello And The Attractions are formed in 1977. The line-up is Elvis Costello (vocals, guitar), Steve Nieve (born Steve Mason) (keyboards), Bruce Thomas (bass) and (the unrelated) Pete Thomas (drums). These are Costello’s best known musical colleagues and the ones with whom he does most of his best work. On 3 October 1977 Elvis Costello goes on a package tour of the British Isles with the rest of the Stiff Records stable of acts: Nick Lowe, Ian Dury And The Blockheads, and Wreckless Eric.

Costello’s second album, ‘This Year’s Model’ (1978) (UK no. 4, US no. 30, AUS no. 26), is released on 17 March. His first disc with The Attractions is characterised as ‘the most “punk” of Costello’s records’. It is also released on a different label, Radar Records, the new concern formed by Costello’s manager, Jake Riviera, as he splits from Stiff taking Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe with him. The twitchy, febrile ‘(I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea’ (UK no. 16) (sort of) provides the album with its title: “She give a little flirt, give herself a little cuddle / But there’s no place here for the mini-skirt waddle / Capital punishment, she is last year’s model / They call her Natasha when she looks like Elsie / I don’t want to go to Chelsea.” The album bristles with other songs of ‘sexual paranoia’ such as ‘No Action’ and ‘Lipstick Vogue’. Costello’s finest song, the romping ‘Pump It Up’, is also present.

Full of riffing guitar, clattering drums and Steve Nieve’s ‘psychocircus organ’, it instructs listeners to “Pump it up / Until you can feel it / Pump it up / When you don’t really need it.” Is it referring to the volume…or something else? Hmmm. ‘Armed Forces’ (1979) (UK no. 2, US no. 10, AUS no. 9) was originally going to be titled ‘Emotional Fascism’, which gives some idea of the general theme. It’s an album ‘wound tight, full of paranoia and anger’. ‘Oliver’s Army’ (UK no. 2) suggests the ghost of Oliver Cromwell hovering over a U.K. government that is trying to solve rising unemployment with increased military service. “But I would rather be anywhere else / But here today,” concludes Costello, over a deceptively bright, tinkling keyboard. The glossy and glassy ‘Accidents Will Happen’ helps set the template for new wave and is another highlight. ‘Green Shirt’ also calls his album home. This is considered ‘a more ambitious and musically diverse album’.

Elvis Costello’s marriage survives his dalliance with Bebe Buell, the self-styled ‘girlfriend to the stars’, in 1979. Costello also finds time this year to produce the first album by The Specials, a multi-racial band from Coventry, who specialise in ska music (the faster-paced ancestor of reggae). The new year brings a new record and a new label. Having folded Radar Records, Jake Riviera now launches the F-Beat label. Elvis Costello’s first offering under that logo is ‘Get Happy!!’ (1980) (UK no. 2, US no. 11, AUS no. 25). This ‘soul-influenced’ album offers eighteen original songs and two cover versions, one of which, a track originally recorded by Sam And Dave, is the single ‘I Can’t Stand Up (For Falling Down)’ (UK no. 4). Elvis Costello’s songs always tend to be concise; none of these songs exceed four minutes.

The almost prissy ‘New Amsterdam’ boasts the wittiest lyrics: “New Amsterdam / It’s become much too much / Til I step on the brakes to get out of her clutches / And speak double-dutch with a real double duchess (or maybe ‘Dutchess’?)”. ‘High Fidelity’, another of this album’s gems, is a phrase associated with the reproduction of recorded sound, but Costello also finds its other meaning of romantic faithfulness. ‘Trust’ (1981) (UK no. 9, US no. 28, AUS no. 71) marks the end of Costello’s first – and greatest – era. On offer here is the dark ‘Clubland’ and shivering ‘New Lace Sleeves’, worthy additions to the songbook. Elvis Costello baffles both critics and fans with his next move: a country music album called ‘Almost Blue’ (1981) (UK no. 7, US no. 50, AUS no. 50). Costello maintains that the hurt and sorrow of country is close to the pained vein of punk / new wave he has been mining.

However, this set of cover versions, produced by Nashville, Tennessee legend Billy Sherrill, comes complete with weeping pedal steel guitar and sighing female backing vocalists, testing the patience and devotion of Costello’s audience. ‘Good Year For The Roses’ (UK no. 6) captures some hearts. Touring in support of the album, it is noted that Costello’s demeanour is different. His ‘pleasant manner’ and ‘outgoing stage delivery’ lead to the observation that ‘Britain’s angriest young man is not angry anymore’. ‘Imperial Bedroom’ (1982) (UK no. 6, US no. 30, AUS no. 49) is also challenging, but in a different way. “I was trying to think or feel my way out of a defeated and exhausted frame of mind to something more glorious,” explains Costello. To achieve this, he hires Geoff Emerick, former assistant to The Beatles’ long-time producer, George Martin, to produce this ‘set of lushly arranged pop’. ‘Beyond Belief’ is the album’s best-known offspring.

Elvis Costello acts as producer for a 1982 single, ‘I Didn’t Mean To Be Mean’, for the Australian band, Mental As Anything. Perhaps seeking more commercial pastures, Elvis Costello brings in Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley to produce his next outing, ‘Punch The Clock’ (1983) (UK no. 3, US no. 24, AUS no. 22). Even the cover shows Costello modelling wire-frame spectacles rather than the more familiar horn-rimmed glasses. ‘Everyday I Write The Book’ serves up a new, more user-friendly artist. ‘Pills And Soap’ shows he still contains plenty of vinegar and ‘Shipbuilding’ is dourly moving. Trying to repeat the trick with ‘Goodbye Cruel World’ (1984) (UK no. 10, US no. 35, AUS no. 53) is less successful, but ‘I Wanna Be Loved’ is positively cuddly. Elvis Costello records a duet with American T-Bone Burnett under the name The Coward Brothers, the 1985 single ‘The People’s Limousine’.

Costello’s marriage to Mary Burgoyne ends in 1985 and he takes up with Cait O’Riordan. She plays bass in Irish punk / folk band, The Pogues, and Elvis Costello produces that outfit’s album ‘Rum, Sodomy And The Lash’ (1985). In 1986, Cait O’Riordan becomes Elvis Costello’s second wife. The services of The Attractions are dispensed with before ‘King Of America’ (1986) (UK no. 11, US no. 39, AUS no. 67). On this album alone, a bearded Elvis Costello glowers forth from the cover. The album is credited to The Costello Show, indicating that Declan McManus may be tiring of his nom de plume (or nom de guerre?), but this proves to be a one-off deal. The album offers ‘a stripped-down, folky approach’. Both Nick Lowe and The Attractions are recalled for ‘Blood And Chocolate’ (1986) (UK no. 16, US no. 84).

This ‘edgy’ album is not a lasting reunion though as Costello’s attention soon turns elsewhere. A watershed occurs in 1987 as Elvis Costello changes to Warner Brothers Records. From this point his ‘erratically paced solo career’ becomes more difficult to follow or comprehend. Things begin on a positive note with news that Costello is collaborating on songs with ex-Beatle, Paul McCartney. It is hoped that this move will be beneficial to both artists. Costello’s sour lyricism is expected to take some of the cloying sweetness away from McCartney, in the same manner as did McCartney’s co-songwriter in The Beatles, John Lennon. Equally, McCartney should steer Costello towards more accessible fare. The result is the album, ‘Spike’ (1989) (UK no. 5, US no. 32, AUS no. 26). The singles, ‘Veronica’ (US no. 19) and ‘This Town’, auger well, but both men walk away from further collaborations. ‘Mighty Like A Rose’ (1991) (UK no. 5, US no. 55, AUS no.

26) is ‘a darker, more challenging record’. It spawns the single ‘The Other Side Of Summer’. Elvis Costello then tries his hand at classical music in a joint effort with The Brodsky Quartet on ‘The Juliet Letters’ (1993) (UK no. 18, US no. 125). The Attractions return briefly to appear on most of the tracks for ‘Brutal Youth’ (1994) (UK no. 2, US no. 34), Costello’s ‘most straightforward and pop-oriented’ album for some time. ‘Kojak Variety’ (1995) (UK no. 21, US no. 102) is a collection of cover versions. ‘All This Useless Beauty’ (1996) (UK no. 28, US no. 53) reverses the formula. It is an album of Elvis Costello originals, but songs he previously gave away to other recording artists. Here, the author renders them in his own style. ‘Painted From Memory’ (1998) (UK no. 32, US no. 78, AUS no.

26) is a collaboration with Burt Bacharach, the 1960s co-author of middle-of-the-road, easy listening pop songs. ‘When I Was Cruel’ (2002) (UK no. 17, US no. 20, AUS no. 34) precedes news at the end of the year that Elvis Costello’s marriage to Cait O’Riordan is over. Following ‘North’ (2003) (UK no. 17, US no. 57), Costello marries his third wife, jazz / pop singer / pianist Diana Krall on 5 December 2003. ‘The Delivery Man’ (2004) (UK no. 73, US no. 40) may be the title of Costello’s next release, but it is his wife who delivers twin sons, Dexter and Frank, on 6 December 2006. Elvis Costello continues his recording career with ‘Momofuku’ (2008) (UK no. 112, US no. 59), ‘Secret, Profane & Sugarcane’ (2009) (UK no.

71, US no. 13) and ‘National Ransom’ (2010) (UK no. 71, US no. 39). The best days of Elvis Costello’s career are in the period 1977 to 1981, the ‘angry’ years, the punk / new wave phase. Perhaps it is not possible to maintain that rage over a lifetime, perhaps it is not desirable. In any case, at least for some time, Elvis Costello was to the new wave equivalent to Bob Dylan, the unofficial poet laureate of a generation. ‘Nerdy in appearance, imperiously rude in manner, Costello came on like The Avenging Dork, turning out one brilliant song, one staggering album after another’. His ‘general, righteous indignation’ allowed him to play a game of ‘Costello vs. The World. And Costello won.’ Sources: ‘The Illustrated Rock Handbook’ edited by Roxanne Streeter, Ray Bonds (Salamander Books, 1983) p.

50, 59 ‘The Rolling Stone Rock Almanac’ by the Editors of ‘Rolling Stone’ magazine (Papermac, 1984) p. 272, 275, 282, 296, 333 allmusic.com, ‘Elvis Costello’ by Stephen Thomas Erlewine as at 29 September 2001 ‘Friday On My Mind’ by Ed Nimmervoll (Five Mile Press, 2004) p. 114 wikipedia.org as at 3 December 2012 ‘The 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time’ – ‘Rolling Stone’ magazine (February 2004) p. 48, 54, 55, 73 lyricsfreak.com as at 14 December 2012 ‘The History Of Rock’ by Mark Paytress (Parragon Books, 2011) p. 192 ‘The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll’, ‘Alternative Scenes: Britain’ by Ken Tucker (Plexus Publishing Limited,1992) p.

582 Song lyrics copyright Plangent Visions Music Ltd Last revised 5 August 2014 Share this: The Elvis Costello Home Page Fathers & sons: The Costellos By Fred Schruers DECLAN MACMANUS TOOK TO the stage in 1977, an angry young man sporting Buddy Holly glasses and a strange name: Elvis Costello. But he wasn't the first MacManus to use Costello as his stage name - that was his dad, Ross, a jazz trumpeter and pop vocalist since the early Fifties. "He had a ska/blue beat hit in Germany," says Elvis with pride, "and a minor hit on `The Long and Winding Road,' under the name Day Costello. That was the first time the Costello name - it's my great-grandmother's name - kind of like emerged from our family." Music runs deep in the MacManus family - Elvis' grandfather learned trumpet in an English military band and played aboard luxury liners during the Titanic days. Elvis twenty-three-year-old son, Matt, has started a band in London.

Ross, 72, was raised in Birkenhead, England, and went from playing bebop jazz trumpet to winning acclaim as a vocalist with the popular Joe Loss Orchestra. For anyone wondering how Elvis Costello progressed from angry young man to Burt Bacharach collaborator, the answer emerges as father and son conduct what's clearly a very fond and long-lived dialogue about music and life. Clearly, for this family, there's no separating the two. ELVIS: Originally my dad was a bop player; the dance band that he [later] sang with was based on the Glenn Miller model, that swinging beat. They included the tunes from the hit parade in the set in the dance hall, and they did a radio broadcast every Friday - not just the ballads but the rocking stuff. I've got a recording of this orchestra playing Pink Floyd's "See Emily Play." Can you imagine? So we never had that generational divide. I had my dad literally coming home and learning the hit-parade tunes every week; there's a record called Ross MacManus Sings Frank Sinatra. Ross: We had a radio program in which we did all the hits live.

So I might be Jim Reeves, or I might be Roy Orbison, the Beatles or the Rolling Stones. Elvis was listening to all this. The famous story about him is that his very first words were, "Skin, Mommy." He wanted "I've Got You Under My Skin," by Sinatra. That and Peggy Lee singing the "Siamese Cat Song." I think he was determined to succeed and knew he would succeed. He had perfect faith in himself. Dec used to go out and do shows when he was thirteen, fourteen, fifteen. He developed bit by bit under his own steam. ELVIS: The New Wave thing, there was a little bit of, "Don't back down" - my dad understood that. The most crazy things that happened in my career were because of the speed we worked at, the amount of drinking and craziness, and things spun out of control. But my dad, my parents, always knew who I was - that I wasn't going nuts.

I remember that the woman that dad sang with for a number of years, Rose Brennan, told me my dad was always either flirting with the tallest, best-looking woman in the room or trying to pick a fight with the biggest guy in the room, depending on his mood. "He was a terror," she said. I think that's where I get some of it from. A lot of the instinctive things I have about being onstage come from watching my dad and the discipline of that band. I saw that it wasn't actually glamorous, that it was sort of a job. So by the time I was a teenager, I wasn't all that convinced I would do music for a living, as much as I loved it. Ross: I often say to people, "My little boy was stolen by the fairies and they brought Elvis Costello in his place." Because when he comes here to my house, it's just the family, we just sit and we talk, and I'm in awe of what he does, how he remembers it all and how he presents it all.

But when I go to the Albert Hall to see him, I'm also saying, "I mightn't have done that just there" - a little bit like the passenger whose feet are driving the car even though I haven't got the pedal on my side. ELVIS: I have a fairly powerful voice; his is much more melodious than mine and very much more powerful, and I have the memory of him singing and the door rattling in the frame. He never had the recording career that I thought he deserves. He's always been an amazing performer, always had bold choices of songs. By the time I got to my fifth album, by the early Eighties, I wasn't listening to pop music - I was listening to all jazz. You can hear the shape of songs starts to change. And that comes from this broad-mindedness that was fostered in my household from an early age. He gave me some very good advice.

I can't tell you the number of times it pops into my head in crucial moments, like when you get a rough throat or youre feeling low - and that is, "Never look up to a note, always look down." Ross: He doesn't suffer fools gladly, but my experience is that he's a very loving person. My mom was stricken with Alzheimer's at the end and needed twenty-four-hour-a-day care. He saw to it that she got it. He wrote the song "Veronica" for her; her first names were Molly Josephine Veronica. She used to say, "You can call me anything you like, but my name is Veronica," and he used that. He phones from Tokyo, and when he's been on an hour, I say, "Get off the phone; watch your bill." That's me being Dad, you see. But the last thing we always say is, "I love you." It's a private moment, but it's the truth.

Elvis Costello's father Ross MacManus, who sang R White's Secret Lemonade Drinker in classic TV ad, dies aged 84 | Daily Mail Online comments Ross MacManus, who wrote and sang the Secret Lemonade Drinker song in the 1970s ad, has died Musician Ross MacManus, who composed and sang I'm A Secret Lemonade Drinker in the famous 1970s' TV ad for R White's, has died aged 84 after battling a long illness. Mr MacManus, the father of singer Elvis Costello, passed away on Thursday evening. The classic ad sees a man in striped pyjamas - played by Julian Chagrin - creeping downstairs for a midnight drink while singing the song. His voice was then over-dubbed with that of Mr MacManus. The commercial first aired in 1973 and ran for nearly nine years. It even gave rise to spoof versions, including one starring Ronnie Corbett as the pyjama man's 'wife'. To this day, it remains one of telly's best-loved advertising jingles.

Scroll down to see the classic ad The R White's ad starred Julian Chagrin as the man in the striped pyjamas, and had his voice overdubbed with that of MacManus The ad, which first aired in 1973, ran for nearly nine years and the song remains one of TV's best-loved jingles Elvis - born Declan MacManus - played the drums and provided backing vocals for the commercial. He cancelled his European tour this month because of his father's ailing health. RELATED ARTICLES Share this article Share He released a statement on his website which read: 'It is with profound sorrow that we announce the passing of Ross MacManus at the age of 84. 'He had a rich and remarkable life. Ross passed peacefully after a long illness. Singer Elvis Costello- born Declan MacManus - cancelled his European tour this month because of his father's ailing health.

They are seen here together in 1994 'He was surrounded by love at the end.The family are deeply grateful for the care and kindness he received from the doctors and nursing staff and for the kindness and support of their friends.' Mr MacManus played the trumpet on two of his son's albums and released the album Elvis' Dad Sings Elvis in which he covered Elvis Presley songs. In 1955, he also sang with the Joe Loss Orchestra.

Question: What is the name of Elvis Costello's famous father?
Answer: Ross MacManus